I thought I’ll never see Jet Li in an action movie once again. Earlier he said he’ll stop accepting action movie projects because he also wanted to try other genres – drama, love story, comedy – just to show that he is a versatile actor. Pero kan prinesenta saiya su pelikulang “Forbidden Kingdom” with international superstar Jackie Chan, nagbago su saiyang isip. Or maybe the project is just once in a lifetime project for, true to the slogan, having these two big names work together happened “never before, and maybe never again”.

Well, I have nothing negative against the movie which I watched the other day. It’s beautiful and I won’t have second thoughts recommending it to action movie enthusiasts. What I find ironic, though, is the title of the movie which coincides with one of the issues being thrown at China — Tibet.

Tibet was once an independent settlement located between China and India. Nasakop ini kan mga Mongols, partikular kan Yuan Dynasty na nagsakop man sa China. Dahil diyan, naging parte an Tibet kan China. 50 years after Lapu-lapu killed Magellan, Tibet established its political power through the Dalai Lama – the spiritual and official head of Tibet. By 1912, the 13th Dalai Lama declared independence from China. The problem nobody recognized this. In politics, there are 5 elements in order for an entity to be declared a state. These are: government, people, territory, sovereignty, and recognition. Kun wara ki saro sa limang nasambit, dai man maaapod na nation-state an sarong nagpo-proklama na maging separadong nasyon. Siguro dahil busy an mga nasyon kaito kaya dai iyan napansin. An Pilipinas, halimbawa, nag-aadjust pa sa panggo-gobyerno kan mga Amerikano kan nasambit na mga panahon. Dahil sa dai narekonisar an Tibet, padagos ining naging parte kan China.

When the 14th Dalai Lama took over, he was forced to have it under the Chinese government. Kaya lang, sa panghiling kan kadaklan naging opresibo an komunistang China sa mga Tibetan kaya napiritan an Dalai Lama na magtago sa India.

Taon-taon, binibisita an Dalai Lama kan saiyang mga taga-sunod. Kan nakaaging bulan kun dai ako nasasala, me mga pilgrim o deboto na nagbalyo sa border kan China asin India para bisitahon an Dalai Lama alagad ini pinagbabadil kn mga soldados na Intsik. Dahil digdi asin sa iba pang bayolasyon ki derechos humanos, naribok an bilog na kinaban asin binanatan ngonyan an Olympics na nakatalaang gibohon sa Beijing. Sabi, ang Olympic spirit daa para sa pagkasararo asin pag-respeto kan tawo alagad an host, dai tatao magrespeto kan derechos humanos. Saen ngonyan an ispirito na dapat mangibabaw?

As I am writing this, the news have it that Jackie Chan is the bearer of the Olympic Torch inside China. This reminded me of the Forbidden Kingdom movie where Jackie Chan is one of those helping the kid tasked to deliver the magic staff to the Forbidden Kingdom in order to save Monkey King. Tibet is like the Forbidden Kingdom and Monkey King could be the Dalai Lama – living in exile. If we consider the Chinese government as the Jade warlord, is Jackie Chan’s role now as a bearer of the Olympic Torch also be of great help to save the Dalai Lama and the Tibet?

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